Country Music News

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Dwight Yoakum has is Bakersfield Biscuits, George Jones has his sausage, and other country stars have their own branded foods, but only one country artist can say they have a flavor of Fritos. Yep, thats right country music fans...Tim McGraw's Spicy Jalapeno Fritos should be stocked in your Wal-Mart store.

In addition, a DVD of McGraw's backstage footage from his upcoming tour will be sold at Wal-Mart in September. Tim McGraw will also appear in TV and print ads for Fritos as the "official snack" of McGraw's new tour which begins on May 9 in Tampa, Fla.

After you get snacked out on his Fritos, wait til August and you will also be able to find a cologne called "McGraw by Tim MCGraw" in stores as well.

Colgone, Fritos, gesh, whats next.... Gotta love the so many ways to support your favorite artist. I'll have more on this topic soon.

If you have first hand accounts of how the Fritos taste, I'd love you to leave a comment.

Monday, April 21, 2008

What really excites you about country music? Think about it for a moment. Is it a concert? Particular artist? A certain sound/type of country? Award shows? CMA Music Fest?

Country music is so special to so many of us, but so many fans don't seem to express their love to the music. There plenty of fans that do, but many don't, or refer to it in the since of an insider type conversation when it is talked about. Think about it, if you talk about a song, artist, or anything related to country music, when someone asks about the artist, its referred to as a "country singer" or something that refers the person to think if you aren't into country, you won't understand. Next time you are in this type of situation, think about it and refer to your conversation that may get the person involved and not as some secret society or niche interest.

Keep this in mind even more when mentioning something that excites you. Get the passion in your voice and dive on in talking about, you will be amazed how quickly a friend, co-worker, or anyone else asking will want to learn more. You could easily make a country music fan and not even know it. I know I have doing just that.

People ask me all the time what excites me about country. I dig into so many thoughts to them; the history, the artists that excite me to hear new music from, the Grand Ole Opry, the real-to-life lyrical connection, and more. After a (good) concert, there is nothing like sharing pictures and thoughts about the performances.

Its really cool to talk to people that share common interests, but try talking to someone that doesn't know much about country music and giving them a little spark to get them to look a little more into country music is awesome.

Don't forget to love and share your love of country, its always good to be reminded of this at times.

Want to share something that excites you about country with fellow fans? Jump on over to the Country Music Alive Message Board and post about it, I'd love to hear from you all!Link: http://board.countrymusicalive.com

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Starting tonight (Tuesday April 8) CBS will begin their new celebrity competition series titled "Secret Talents of the Stars." 16 celebrities will compete in a tournament-style format to determine who has the best hidden talent. Their performance will be discussed by a judging panel, however the home viewer will vote after each episode to decide who stays and who goes home each week.

John O'Hurley will host and actress Debbie Reynolds, R&B singer Brian McKnight, and producer Gavin Polone will serve as judges for Secret Talents of the Stars.

But here is the cool news. Country music fans get ready and support Clint Black. He is one of the 16 celebrities to compete. His talent will be in stand-up comedy, and if you have ever been to a Clint Black show or met Black, you know that he will be around on the show, no doubt. Black has first great writing strength and also he is naturally funny. This is going to be a great series.

Here is the complete list of celebrities comepeting:

- Country singer Clint Black performing stand-up comedy

- Former Star Trek actor George Takei crooning as a country singer

- Former The Cosby Show actor Malcom-Jamal Warner performing an original song on bass guitar as part of a Hip Hop Orchestra

- Actress/model and former Ex-Wives Club co-host Marla Maples doing a gymnastics routine with The Anti-Gravity Troupe

The series premires tonight on CBS at 10pm ET/PT. Catch it and remember to support Clint Black, but only if you believe his performance is the best. I have no doubt though it will. I will be watching and keeping up with this series, I certainly hope you will as well.